Adamawa State Governor, Ahmadu Umaru Fintiri, has directed senior medical officers in the state to submit requests for critical hospital equipment directly to his office as part of measures to accelerate healthcare upgrades and address the growing challenge of medical personnel leaving the country. The governor gave the directive on Sunday in Yola while receiving members of the Association of Principal Medical Officers (APMO) on a courtesy visit to the Government House. Fintiri said the directive would enable the government to obtain first-hand information on the urgent needs of public health facilities and respond more quickly to critical gaps in medical equipment and infrastructure. He explained that Principal Medical Officers in tertiary institutions and state-owned hospitals could henceforth communicate pressing equipment needs directly to the state executive, without necessarily passing through the usual administrative channels. The governor also expressed concern over the increasing migration of Nigerian doctors and other health professionals in search of better working conditions abroad, saying his administration was committed to improving the welfare and working environment of medical personnel in the state. According to him, the government has embarked on several interventions aimed at strengthening healthcare delivery across Adamawa. Among the measures are the construction of seven new cottage hospitals and the ongoing renovation of existing health facilities across the state. The government has also installed CT scanners in Numan and Michika and provided new dialysis equipment at the Adamawa State Specialist Hospital. In addition, modern ultrasound machines are being distributed to health facilities across the 21 local government areas, federal health centres and the state teaching hospital, particularly to strengthen maternal and diagnostic care. On staff welfare, Fintiri pledged to review the conditions of service for medical officers and work towards aligning them with national standards to improve staff retention and productivity. The governor further disclosed that the state had established a College of Medicine at Adamawa State University as part of efforts to increase the local supply of qualified medical professionals. He added that the monthly stipend for undergraduate medical students had been increased from N8,500 to N100,000, while the state was also funding overseas postgraduate scholarships to enhance the skills and capacity of medical professionals from Adamawa. Earlier, the State Chairman of APMO, Dr. Zamani Tizhe, commended the Fintiri administration for its interventions in the health sector. Tizhe particularly highlighted the recent second increase in the running costs of general hospitals, describing it as a significant boost to the effective operation of healthcare facilities across the state. The association said the interventions would contribute to improving healthcare delivery, strengthening medical infrastructure and creating better conditions for the retention of doctors and other healthcare professionals in Adamawa.
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